Author: Nargizian David

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
—————————————— —-
PRESS AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
375010 Telephone: +37410. 544041 ext 202
Fax: +37410. 562543
Email: [email protected]:

PRESS RELEASE

06-09-2005

Minister Oskanian receives Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, the
OSCE Chairman-in-Office

On September 6, Minister Oskanian received Slovenia’s Foreign Minister
Dimitrij Rupel in his capacity as OSCE Chairman-in-Office.

During the meeting, the sides exchanged views on the current stage of the
Nagorno Karabakh peace process. Minister Oskanian welcomed the interest of
the OSCE Slovenian chairmanship and the OSCE Troika in the South Caucasus,
as well as the efforts made by chairmanship for the peaceful settlement of
the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

Minister Rupel and Minister Oskanian highlighted the effective co-operation
between Armenia and OSCE Office in Yerevan in various spheres. The sides
also discussed OSCE reforms, Armenia’s constitutional reform process and the
up-coming referendum in November when the reform package will be voted upon.

They also discussed prospects for peace in light of the recent meetings of
the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan. During the press conference which
followed the meeting, Minister Rupel expressed the hope that during the
annual OSCE Ministerial Meeting, this year in Ljubljana, there may be a
paragraph noting positive progress in the peace process.

Representatives of the OSCE chair countries last year and next year
accompanied representatives of the Slovenian Foreign Ministry as the OSCE
troika. Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, Personal Representative of the
Chairman-in-Office of OSCE, and Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin of the OSCE
Yerevan Office accompanied the Chairman-in-Office during his visit.

MIGRATION BALANCE NEGATIVE IN ALL CIS COUNTRIES EXCEPT RUSSIA AND BELARUS

RIA Novosti, Russia
September 07, 2005

BAKU, September 7 (RIA Novosti, Geray Dadashev) – Among the CIS
countries, only Russia and Belarus have a positive balance of
migration, a Russian official said Wednesday.

Alexander Kurtin, the president of the International Association of
Pension and Social Funds, said that in 2003, immigration compensated
for depopulation in Russia by 10% and in Belarus by 10.5%.

In the remaining CIS countries, there is a negative balance of
migration, he said, speaking at the conference for Globalization and
Social Protection of Labor Migrants, which began Wednesday in the
Azeri capital. In 2003, the highest levels of migration out of CIS
countries were in Armenia (25 people in every 10,000), Kyrgyzstan
(33) and Tajikistan (17).

CZECH REPUBLIC 4 ARMENIA 1

Sportinglife.com, UK
Aug 8 2005

Czech Republic maintained the pressure on Group One leaders Holland
on Wednesday night with an emphatic defeat of Armenia in Olomouc.

The Czechs ran out comfortable winners despite a poor first-half
performance.

They picked up the tempo after the break though and cruised into
a 4-0 lead thanks to goals from Marek Heinz and Milan Baros and a
double from Jan Polak.

Ara Hakobyan grabbed a late consolation but the Czechs had already
done enough.

Without influential playmaker Tomas Rosicky through injury, the home
side struggled to find any fluency in the early stages with several
passes going astray.

They still dominated possession, Heinz forcing visiting keeper Roman
Berezovsky into an early save and Baros mis-hitting his effort from
in front of goal.

But Armenia held their own for the opening half-hour and even had
the best chance of the first period.

Hakobyan robbed Tomas Galasek on the halfway line and ran unopposed
to the Czech penalty area only for home keeper Jaromir Blazek to
block his shot with his legs.

It was a rare foray forward for Armenia and their attacking threat
dried up completely after the break with substitute Vladimir Smicer
proving dangerous down the right following his introduction.

Smicer almost made an immediate impact but Berezovsky blocked his shot
while Tomas Ujfalusi came close to giving the hosts the lead with a
clever lob which Robert Arzumanyan did well to head off his own line.

The Czechs finally made the breakthrough after 48 minutes, Heinz’s
volley deflecting off Armenia skipper Sargis Hovsepjan and into
the net.

Luck deserted the visitors again four minutes later when Berezovsky
was undone by another deflection, this time off Karen Dokhoyan,
which allowed Polak’s shot to find the net.

Baros made it 3-0 after 58 minutes, tapping in after Berezovsky saved
a Jan Koller header, and Polak capped a fine individual display by
hammering home from long range 18 minutes later.

Hakobyan netted from close range with five minutes to go.

Teams

Czech Republic: Blazek, Grygera, Polak, Galasek, Poborsky, Koller,
Skacel (Smicer 46), Baros (Jun 80), Heinz, Ujfalusi, Rozehnal
(Sivok 70).

Subs Not Used: Kinsky, Zelenka, Hubschman, Pospech.

Goals: Heinz 47, Polak 52, Baros 58, Polak 76.

Armenia: Berezovsky, Hovsepyan, Arzumanian, Dokhoyan, Tadevosian
(Melikian 64), Valeri Aleksanian, Khachatryan (Tigranyan 71),
Karen Aleksanian, Mkrtchian, Aram Hakobian (Artur Petrosian 57),
Ara Hakobian.

Subs Not Used: Kasparov, Baghdarasian, Voskanian, Voskanyan.

Booked: Tadevosian, Hovsepyan.

Goals: Ara Hakobian 86.

Att: 12,015

Ref: Martin Hansson (Holmsjo).

AUSTRIA INTENDS TO BE MEDIATOR IN KARABAKH CONFLICT PEACEFUL SETTLEMENT

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 8. ARMINFO. Austria intends to be a mediator
between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the process of Karabakh conflict
peaceful settlement, Turkish “Milliet” newspaper informs.

According to the source, Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plasnik
stated at a press-conference after a meeting with Azeri Foreign
Minister Elmar Mamedyarov. She reminded on Vienna’s efforts in
Karabakh conflict peaceful settlement process within both the OSCE
Minsk Group and the UN frameworks. Plasnik stressed that Austria in
future also will continue to contribute to the quickest settlement
of Karabakh conflict.

EUROPEAN AIRLINE BLACKLISTS CRITICISED

Airline Industry Information
September 5, 2005

Airline Industry Information-©1997-2005 M2 Communications Ltd

European media and analysts have said that the airline blacklists
released by Belgium, France and Switzerland do not go far enough in
addressing safety concerns.

Switzerland’s list contains only two airlines that are banned from
using the country’s airports or airspace because of issues with safety
or maintenance records, while Belgium and France have a total of 14
airlines on their lists. According to those who criticised the lists
as failing to address the safety concerns after recent crashes, the
number fails to include all the companies that are a cause for concern.

Pierre Condom, editorial director of the magazine Interavia, said the
Swiss list is “a farce” because one airline has no aircraft anymore
and the other transports cargo. According to the Swiss federal office
for civil aviation (BAZL), the two banned airlines are Flash Airlines
(Egypt) and Air Van Airlines (Armenia).

–Boundary_(ID_OZdxql6KwjeoQR89rtSd/g)–

JOHN EVANS: CHANGE OF POWER NOT NECESSARY CONDITION FOR DEMOCRATIZATION IN ARMENIA

Pan Armenian News
05.09.2005 06:05

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ U.S. Ambassador to the RA John Evans said the
U.S. does not consider change of power to be an essential condition
for democratization in Armenia and will exert every effort to make
the parliamentary elections in 2007 and presidential election in 2008
free and fair, RFE/RL reports. Mr. Evan confirmed the U.S.’s support
to the constitutional reform. “Armenia has a possibility to pass
the necessary changes in constitutional order”, the Ambassador noted
adding that the U.S. is not trying to tell the Armenian electorate
how to vote. “We say the following: this is a very important task,
which is worth proper attention of the voters and serious discussion
in the National Assembly”, the diplomat said. The Ambassador does not
think that the constitutional reform will empower Robert Kocharian to
run for President for the third time. When asked of the consequences
of an unfair referendum, the Ambassador said, ” We witnessed how
falsified elections drove people to streets. It should serve as a
good lesson not only for Armenia but also for all the states of the
region. People are expecting fair election. So does the U.S.”, he said.

REFERENDUM ON DRAFT CONSTITUTION UNLIKELY TO DESTABILIZE SITUATION IN
ARMENIA: ANDRANIK MIGRANYAN

ARKA News Agency
Sept 2 2005

MOSCOW, September 2. /ARKA/. A referendum on constitutional amendments
in Armenia will is unlikely to be a factor of destabilization of the
situation in the country or a prerequisite for a colored revolution,
the well-known Russian political scientist, Professor of Moscow State
Institute of International Relations, RF Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Andranik Migranyan told ARKA. “Colored revolutions were as a rule
carried out when the authorities were believed to have committed
mass election rigging. A referendum is not elections,” Migranyan
said. According to him, if a referendum on confidence in the President
had been held, “it could have been a real prerequisite.” “I think that
the draft constitution is not a sufficient occasion for stimulating
such far-reaching consequences as a change of regime,” Migranyan
said. According to him, the opposition will find it difficult to take
advantage of this occasion. “I believe that the opposition will try to
mobilize its supporters, though we know that the Armenian opposition
has been failing to do so, except for 1996,” he said. According to him,
the problem is whether the opposition will succeed in polarization
on any issue, whereas the authorities’ task is that no reasons for
polarization exist. Migranyan said that it is the origin of the
tactics of the authorities and the opposition. According to him, the
authorities will try to distance themselves from the referendum by
stating that they have nothing in common with it, but it is Europe’s
requirement, “no matter how we vote, it has nothing to do with the
President or the incumbent authorities.” “And the opposition will be
trying to involve the authorities in discussions and conflicts over
certain issues to create a basis for further struggle in the next
presidential and parliamentary elections,” Migranyan said. P.T. -0–

Tourist boom for Adjara

The Messenger, Georgia
Sept 2 2005

Officials credit television spots for brining Azeri, Ukrainian and
most of all Armenian tourists to Georgia’s Black Sea resorts
By M. Alkhazashvili

One of the Saakashvili administration’s key economic priorities
is the development of tourism in Adjara. The summer season is of
special importance for this coastal region, as it provides much of the
population with the income they need to subsist on for the entire year.

Many believe that Adjarans were so quick to oppose their local despotic
leader Aslan Abashidze in May of last year because they feared that
the conflict between the latter and the central government might have,
along with other negative consequences, ruined the 2004 tourist season.

This year’s resort season will last until October 25, but it can be
said that Adjara has already received the majority of its tourists.
The local and central governments, as well as leaders in the tourism
industry have declared this season a great success.

In 2004, less than 20,000 people vacationed in Batumi, but this year
that indicator reached 65,000. In addition to domestic vacationers,
the number of foreigners visiting Batumi also significantly
increased. According to Tavisupali Gazeti, the main influx of foreign
tourists to Adjara came from Armenia, Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Germany,
Denmark, Norway, the United States, Turkey and Iran.

The list of countries is impressive, though some of the aforementioned
states, namely those in the West, produced only a small amount of
tourists. Understandably, while developing strategies to entice foreign
vacationers, the main accent is placed on neighboring countries.

On the initiative of the Adjara Tourism and Resorts Department,
a 35-second promotional clip was produced and aired on Armenian,
Azerbaijani and Ukrainian television. As the head of the department,
Temur Zoidze states, this commercial played a key role in the
attraction of tourists from abroad. “This effort yielded many tourists
from foreign countries. We have a program to target Ukraine and if
it is implemented, many more tourists will come from that country in
the future,” he said, as quoted by Tavisupali Gazeti.

A major share of foreign tourists in Adjara this year came from
Armenia. This is due to two basic factors – it is the nearest coastal
area to that country and, for understandable historical reasons,
Armenians do not feel comfortable visiting the more prestigious
resorts of the Turkish Black Sea coast, as the elite of many other
regional countries do. In the future, Adjara will continue its
policy of attracting tourists from Armenia and in so doing, create
new opportunities for cooperation between the countries.

It should be pointed out that the president of breakaway Abkhazia,
Sergei Baghapsh, also attempted to entice tourists from Armenia.
During a mid-August visit to Moscow, he is reported to have held
a closed door meeting with Armenian businessmen where he offered
them to become actively engaged in investing in the Abkhaz resort
business. Though the Sokhumi authorities categorically deny these
reports, the Georgian government speculates that Baghapsh focused on
Armenian businessmen because he knew that their deeper involvement
in the resort industry in Abkhazia would cause great irritation
in Tbilisi.

FAIR SETTLEMENT OF ARMENIA-AZERBAIJAN, NAGORNO KARABAKH CONFLICT EQUITABLE TO INTERESTS OF THE GREAT BRITAIN

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Sept 1 2005

This idea was underlined at the meeting of the Minister of Defense
of Azerbaijan, colonel-general Safar Abiyev with the ambassador of
United Kingdom of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the country
Lawrence Bristow and the commander of the British military advisory –
educational group, colonel Hew Persley.

The minister highly estimated preparation by the British military
advisory – educational group of instructors for the Armed Forces
of Azerbaijan, noted, that it renders positive influence on
participation of the country’s our Armed Forces in peacemaking
operations, preparation of the military staff, successful carrying
out of reforms in the Armed Forces, implementation of terms of the
Plan of Activity on Individual Partnership.

Having noted that training by colonel Hew Persley as an experienced
officer, who long time worked in system of the NATO, of instructors
in Azerbaijan serves strengthening of military cooperation between
the Great Britain and Azerbaijan, the Ambassador has told: “the
Azerbaijan military men are very competent and prepared. We are going
to continue fruitful cooperation and in the future. I thank you for
fruitful cooperation”.

Having touched the present military-political situation in region of
Southern Caucasus and settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict,
colonel-general Safar Abiyev has told: “The Armenian side has
placed a significant amount of weapon and ammunition at the occupied
territories. In spite of the fact that the Security Council of the
United Nations has adopted Four Resolutions on withdrawal of the
occupational forces of Armenia from the Azerbaijan lands, Armenia
rejects to observe the requirements of the mentioned resolutions. And
today patrons of Armenia continue to arm it. In the question of
settlement of the conflict, Azerbaijan faces with application of
double standards and consequently Armenia being a state – aggressor,
feels impunity and feels like freely. Azerbaijan is capable to release
its lands, and if so will go and farther, we shall liberate our lands.

Having emphasized that he is informed on essence of the conflict,
Ambassador Lawrence Bristow has told: “Participation of President Ilham
Aliyev in negotiations is important event. Azerbaijan successfully
goes in the direction of settlement of the conflict. The Great Britain
supports strategic line pursued by the President of Azerbaijan and
directed on solution of the problem, which should be settled on the
basis of international legal norms. The fair settlement of the problem
is equitable to interests of the Great Britain”.

Having noted that Armenia is a state – aggressor, that all states
of the world should see and confirm by all means this fact, take
measures directed on immediate clearing of the Azerbaijan lands,
the Minister has declared that if the question will not be shortly
solved in the said form, the people of Azerbaijan itself will make
certain decision concerning settlement of the conflict.

PROCEEDS FROM COMMUNICATION SERVICES IN ARMENIA IN FIRST 7 MONTHS OF
2005 TOTALED $91.420 MLN

YEREVAN, AUGUST 31. ARMINFO. Proceeds from communication services
in Armenia for the first 7 months of 2005 totaled 42,053.6 mln AMD
($91.420 mln) having grown 19.2% as against the same period of 2004.
The National Statistical Service of Armenia reports that proceeds from
communication services provided to the population totaled 23,923.9
mln AMD ($92 mln) and grew 28.3%.